Hans-Joachim Roedelius and Christopher Chaplin first met in 2010 at the "Gugginger Irritationen 2" festival near Vienna, dedicated to Art Brut. In 2011, Roedelius was invited to play a live piano set for the BBC, which would be recorded and remixed by a musician of his choice, but with whom he had never worked before. Roedelius chose Christopher Chaplin for the task. The result was broadcast on BBC Radio 3's "Late Junction Sessions" program in June 2011. Roedelius then asked Christopher to collaborate further on his material, in view of a possible album. A year later, King of Hearts was born.